Light on their feet
Never miss Dancing with the Stars? Then check out this month’s lineup at the Egg. New York Theatre Ballet performs the classic Cinderella — fairy godmother, charming prince and all — on Apr. 5. Tapper extraordinaire Savion Glover joins forces with the Albany Symphony on Apr. 11 for a program that includes music by Duke Ellington and Leonard Bernstein. Nederlands Dans Theatre II, a modern ensemble from Holland, takes the stage on Apr. 19. Buckets & Tap Shoes (Apr. 26) utilizes the high energy and spontaneity characteristic of street performers; Giordano Jazz Dance Chicago (Apr. 30) combines Broadway moves in a jazzy modern style. Call for ticket information.
Empire State Plaza, Albany. 518-473-1845 or www.theegg.org
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Motown royalty: The Temptations sing “Happy Birthday” to the BardavonNot your imagination
Poughkeepsie’s venerable Bardavon 1869 Opera House turns 140 years young this month. To celebrate, the theater — which over the years has welcomed top-flight entertainers from Mark Twain to Frank Sinatra — hosts the Temptations for a birthday bash concert. The multi-Grammy winning vocal group has a string of chart-toppers as long as your arm: My Girl, Ain’t Too Proud to Beg, and Just My Imagination, to name a few. Members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the legendary quintet has sold more than 22 million records during their five-decades-long career.
Apr. 4 at 8 p.m. $75, $125, $175
35 Market St., Poughkeepsie. 845-473-2072 or www.bardavon.org
Scary stories
One doesn’t usually go to the opera expecting to be frightened. But your nerves may take a beating at Taconic Opera’s season-ending double bill. Il Tabarro — considered to be one of Giacomo Puccini’s best works — tells of a wife’s unfaithfulness to her husband (and is said to have one of the most chilling finales in all of opera). The late composer (and Mt. Kisco resident) Gian Carlo Menotti’s The Medium concerns a woman who pretends to speak to the dead — and finds, to her horror, that they want to answer her.
Apr. 25-26. Sat. 8 p.m., Sun. 2 p.m. $32-$47
Yorktown Stage. 1974 Commerce St., Yorktown Heights. 914-245-3415 or www.taconicopera.org
The lay of the land
The Valley is a hotbed for history, as this year’s Quadricentennial celebrations attest. We all know about Henry Hudson and Robert Fulton; but three other local luminaries are feted at this month’s Tastemakers of an Era event. Participants at this two-day gathering in Newburgh will learn about Andrew Jackson Downing, Calvert Vaux, and Frederick Clark Withers, members of our nation’s first architectural company. Separately and together, these 19th-century Valleyites were responsible for the popular Hudson River Bracketed house design, as well as the layout of Central Park and other public landscapes. Sponsored by the Historical Society of Newburgh Bay and the Highlands, the activities include a symposium discussion as well as a self-guided tour of buildings and other sites designed by Downing, Vaux, and/or Withers.
Apr. 25-26. Call or E-mail for exact schedule and ticket information
845-561-2585 or historicalsocietynb@yahoo.com
Funny (and bluesy) guys
Comedy (and the blues) reigns supreme all month at Peekskill’s Paramount Center for the Arts. Humorist and author David Sedaris spices up his social commentary with a razor-sharp wit (Apr. 2 at 7:30 p.m. $40-$60). The following evening, Grammy-winning stand-up specialist Lewis Black skewers all things political in his new show, “Let Them Eat Cake” (Apr. 3 at 8 p.m. $50-$100). An important influence on rockers from Jimi Hendrix to Eric Clapton, iconic guitarist Buddy Guy plays his unique brand of Chicago blues on Apr. 15 (8 p.m. $40-$60). And those masters of comic timing, the Smothers Brothers, celebrate their 50th anniversary in show business with a concert of music and laughter (Apr. 23 at 7:30 p.m. $45-$55).
1008 Brown St., Peekskill. 914-739-2333 or www.paramountcenter.org
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Art to own
Most people know that Samuel F.B. Morse invented the Morse code. But you may not realize that he was also an accomplished artist and a founding member of the National Academy of Design. Locust Grove, Morse’s Poughkeepsie home, this month hosts its first fine-art auction of works by prominent regional artists. Items up for sale include Poet’s Walk (at left) by Rhinebeck’s James Gurney (the author/illustrator best-known for his Dinotopia books), photographs by Poughkeepsie’s Eric Lindbloom, and Depression-era studies done for the Poughkeepsie Post Office murals by Woodstock artist Charles Rosen.
Sale preview begins Apr. 21; free gala cocktail party Apr. 24 at 5 p.m. Auction Apr. 26 at 1 p.m.
Rte. 9, Poughkeepsie. 845-454-4500 or www.lgny.org
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